Cancer has a characteristic that we teach our children. Share. Unfortunately, its sharing causes heartache, financial strain and often death. In a period of less than ten years, I lost my sister to colon cancer, prayed for the recovery of two of my sisters-in-law to survive breast cancer and nearly lost my husband to esophageal cancer. A classmate of mine from my writing class had cancer. It just happened. One day, she had a cough and the next day she was down for the count. She waged a brave battle for over a year against her demon, but lost to cancer. Enough sharing already!

I donâ€™t know anyone who has not been touched by cancer in some way; family or friends. My husbandâ€™s survival experience prompted me to write a Memoir; I MUST BE DREAMING. While it was therapeutic and hopefully those readers who experience symptoms of GERD will pay attention, itâ€™s not a cure.

My fellow authors and I donate proceeds from book sales at advertised book signing events. We have joined forces with the White Lions Foundation and the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR Foundation). Our Writers Unite to Fight Cancer group is taking action. Weâ€™ve turned our book events into something special; an opportunity to do our share in raising money for cancer research.

We each present our newest books at each event. In addition to I Must Be Dreaming, I have my award winnning childrenâ€™s book, LIBBY’S VACATION. It is a perfect stocking stuffer for Christmas.

Please join us in our challenge of raising funds for AACR Foundation. There is still HOPE. This year has been declared the the year of the birthday. My husband and I walked in a Relay for Life. I was awestruck at the number of people participating who had survived cancer, were stricken with cancer and walking in spite of their pain and their supporters. When we walked the first lap in silence around the high school track with our candles flickering in the darkness, Amazing Grace played over the intercom. The entire track was lined with luminaries representing family members, who had lost their struggle. Organizers of the event had set up a huge luminary display on the stadium steps that spelled out HOPE. The second lap, the luminaries had been rearranged to spell CURE. People cheered. Everyone cried. Your donations can help one more person celebrate another birthday.

by Louise Laughlin author of I Must Be Dreaming, Libby’s Vacation and Santa Goes Shopping.

Ever wonder where Santa gets ideas for toys? Your child will be delighted with this wonderfully illustrated book about Santa and Mrs. Claus. For only $12.00 plus shipping & handling, you will have a great stocking stuffer.

Purchase this delightful book and ease your child’s mind when you go on vacation and your pet isn’t with you.Libby’s Vacation is an amusing story about a yellow lab. Its delightful illustrations capture the charm of Liberty Bell’s character. If you are interested in purchasing a copy at $12.00 plus s&h, please send an email to lrlaughlin@q.com. Please indicate if you would like your book autographed by the author and illustrator. Have fun reading this to your child.

On his quest to hike the entire Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine, Larry talked our son, Jason into spending a few days with him hiking through Tennessee. After a long day of hiking in inclimate weather, Jason and Larry reached the shelter one night and encountered what seemed to be inexperienced hikers. Their packs were too clean for the amount of days they claimed to have hiked and their entries into the shelter’s log book seemed to be in code. They chated with the newcomers, who claimed to have been on the trail for a month. The next day, Larry and Jason hiked into town. They weren’t surprised to see one of the hikers come out of a restaurant and dressed in a suit and looking well rested. Larry was intriqued. “How did you get here so quickly?” A bit unnerved, the gentleman claimed he had hiked all night to get to town. The Appalachian Trail offers beautiful views, well marked trails, but hiking at night is not the norm. There are bears, after all. After Larry and Jason came home andÂ caught up on the news. They discovered a violent crime had occurred in one of the shelters. A crazy man had killed a young woman because he lusted after her backpack. Scary. Larry determined he and Jason had been interviewed to find out if they were suspects. They weren’t, of course, but Larry will forever tell the story of how he figured out the guest hikers hadÂ been undercover detectives.

Two days before Thanksgiving 2002, I was in the kitchen preparing dinner when the phone rang. I saw on the caller ID that it was Dr. Saperstein. My heart rate began to increase. I had butterflies in my stomach. It had been four days since Larryâ€™s endoscopy and biopsy. I picked up the remote handset and leaned on the kitchen table for support. I grabbed a chair with my other hand and sat down.
â€œThis isnâ€™t good news or you wouldnâ€™t be calling so soon.â€
Larry heard my comments, muted the television and came into the kitchen. I pointed to a chair for him to sit down and scooted mine next to him so that we could share the phone receiver.
â€œIâ€™m afraid I do have bad news. The polyp was malignant. Larry needs to have his esophagus removed before Christmas. Thereâ€™s a doctor next door to my office, who specializes in this surgery. I donâ€™t know Dr. Runfola, personally, but I think you should call him first thing in the morning and make an appointment.â€